'Prints on Wood Show' at Distinction Gallery Opening Reception

Posted on November 17, 2015

This weekend, the Prints on Wood team made way to Escondido's Distinction Gallery to attend the opening reception of the PRINTS ON WOOD SHOW. Featuring 35 artists, the show exhibits work from POW collaborators and Distinction Gallery represented artists all printed on glorious, durable, eco-friendly wood. Experience the show and learn more about the artists below.

Michael Aaron Williams is a painter and street artist from Knoxville, TN who uses paint and ink to portray individuals. Intrigued by the vulnerability of humans, Williams is quoted as stating this about his work:

"Similar to the outdoor installations, my gallery artwork also focuses on the ephemeral nature of people. Through my paintings and drawings, I attempt to represent the fragile nature of life, purity, and culture. Paint and ink are the vehicles by which movement and conflict are expressed. The beauty and pain of human nature are represented by the creation and deconstruction of the artwork. Rather than wholeness necessitating beauty, I portray the human soul as complete despite the fractures. As such, the artwork becomes more relatable to the viewer and consequently more impacting."

Pamela Wilson has become well-known in the art world for developing haunting work that evokes the moodier end of existence, creating a unique and compelling narrative for audiences. In her piece "The Absinthe Drinker and the Hostile Silence," she captures the essence of a lone, tattooed, red-eyed woman indulging in a a bit of liquor and likely an unwanted bout of silence.

French-born Virginie Mazareau brings a layer of youth and innocence to the show with her colorful, illustrative pieces "L'Amusant Cavalier (The Fun Dancer)" (left) and "Playing, Fishing, Fishing Again," (right). Mazareau will have a solo exhibition at Distinction gallery next month so stay tuned(!!!).

Pop Art is alive and well with the work of Scott Rohlfs. His pieces "Awake Too Long" (left) and "Haute" (right) offer bubbly, glossy and comic-inspired aesthetics cohesively in-line with the rest of his expansive portfolio. Widely known for his surreal take on Pop Art, Rohlfs spends his time focused on the changing scheme of femininity and capturing it in each unique stroke of the brush.

Amanda Lynn is a visual artist from San Francisco who earned her Bachelor’s of Fine Art in illustration at the Academy of Art. For this weekend's POW Show, Amanda brings forth three unique pieces including a panoramic that would look uh-mazing on all of our living room walls. Here's a look at "Season of Change," (top) "Seasons of Change - Spring" (bottom left) and "Seasons of Change - Summer" (bottom right). All, even more vivid in person.

The buzz surrounding artist Victor Roman is serious these days for good reason-- I mean, just peep his work. Most recently, he was featured in Beautiful Bizarre's September issue as an On the Rise artist and even designed a label for Blue Moon. In his three-piece series for the POW Show, he delivers "Nebulous," (left) "Reject the Sorrow" (center) and "Lost in the Haze" (right).

With a genuine and publicized "life-long love for birds," Heather McKey brings us exoticism through a trio of feathered friends in her pieces "Hope Sparks," (left) "The Queen Mother" (center) and "Natural Attraction," (right).

Philadelphia artist Joka is sort of a character. While he pushes an informal sense of humor and comical humility in his online presence, he is best known for his precise, anal retentive and obsessive hyperpointillism-- which is a more mature-sounding big brother of 'stippling,' The craft is remarkably exhibited in Joka's three above prints titled "Astro Cortege 1" (left), "Astro Cortege 3" (center) and "Astro Cortege 2" (right).

Jimbot, also known by his less colorful, parent-given moniker 'James Demski,' gives us a bit of adorable robot fusion in his trio of characters: "Heat Vision" (top) "Specimen X" (bottom left) and "Moving Day" (bottom right).

Nick Berry offers up something kind of psychedelic with his POW Show trio. His squared illustrations introduce us to three varying characters in his head: a sabertooth, an owl and a bum. Check out "Sabertooth" (top), "Owl Jack" (bottom left) and "King Bum" (bottom right).

You can never go wrong with notable names and faces, and presumably, Joshua Roman has figured this out. The California-native, who's been exhibited in dozens of galleries up and down the California coast, is revered for his portraits of beautiful people and beloved celebs. Check out his geometrically colorful and very wavy adaptations of "Salavador Dali" on the left, and Billy Murray as "Steve Zissou" on the right.

Rooted in the folklore of her Scandinavian heritage as well as her experiences growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Kari-Lise Alexander’s work exudes mysticism through her portrayal of women, animals and nature. For the POW Show, she offers a beautifully small and discreet portrait entitled "Seventh Maiden" (left) and a larger, more provocative and dreamier image entitled "The Reveal." "The Reveal" is an alluring piece in the show, as it's never really quite clear if the damsel is being draped in lace or asphyxiated by plastic. Ohhh, the wonders of perception and art.

Megan Buccere brings forth two unique pieces to the POW Show; firstly, her adaptation of Snow White partaking in the age-old tale's poison apple, entitled "Sweetest Bite" (left), and lastly, a striking and sobering image of a woman, hair silver and greyed, weeping. This piece is entited "Live Again" (right). The latter, in case you were wondering, is in fact embellished by the artist with gold leaf over the wood print, making it one-of-a-kind.

Ethereal illustrator Cathrine Swenson brings us into the light with her POW Show contribution entitled "Just Over the Bridge." The delicately dark work of Swenson-- primarily noticeable in her depictions of lone, tiny human subjects-- is balanced off by her keen ability to instill an unusual sense of innocent and ignorant hope into each scene.

Kelly Vivanco uses a consistent color pallet and execution in her portfolio of paintings capturing (mostly) depictions of young, albeit, self-assured looking young ladies. Her three pieces photoed above "Grace" (left), "Hiding Place" (center) and "Jeweled Bird" (right) all capture a sense of mysticism and knowing.

Ross Jaylo's "Vibrations" kind of hits you where it counts, reminding us of the comfort of connecting with someone kind of mind-blowing on a level above and below the surface. Jaylo's ability to capture the experience through two glowing skeletal beings is all the more intriguing. It's one of those pieces where you just get it, leaving you wanting to squeeze your honey's hand and convince him to buy you more art.

All of these pieces are available for purchase on Distinction Gallery's website. Click here to see the entirety of the items available, find out their measurements and make your holiday purchase for that special art enthusiast in your life.